HOOD RIVER NEWS | Hood River, Ore.
A10 Wednesday, January 8, 2020
hoodrivernews.com
GREATER GORGE
‘Snow Birds’: Dalles Dam hosts 10th Eagle Watch
The Dalles Dam Visitor Cen-
ter hosts the 10th annual Eagle
Watch Saturday, Jan. 18 from 9
a.m. to 3 p.m. Watch as bald ea-
gles roost in their natural hab-
itat along the Columbia River.
During this Eagle Watch
event, the visitor center will be
open for live raptor presenta-
tions, provided by the U.S. For-
est Service, Columbia Gorge
Discovery Center and Rowena
Wildlife Clinic.
Visitors are welcome and
encouraged to bring their own
scopes and binoculars; there
will be a limited number avail-
able for use. This event is free
and accessible to those with
disabilities.
The Columbia River is an
excellent food source for bald
eagles that migrate each winter
in search of food, said a press
release. These “snow birds” use
the green space below the dam
Photo by Stephen Datnoff
as a winter vacation home.
EAGLE sightings like this are possible at The Dalles Dam. For a close-up view such as this one by Stephen Datnoff, bring scopes or Watching from The Dalles Dam
Visitor Center provides a front
binoculars if you have them; some will be available for use.
row seat to view eagles.
Mid-December through
mid-February is the best time
to visit Seufert Park for bird
watching. The park, adjacent to
The Dalles Dam Visitor Center,
is open to the public for day
use.
The Dalles Dam Visitor Cen-
ter is located off exit 87 of I-84,
traveling east on Bret Clod-
felter Way. Inclement weather
may cause the event to be re-
scheduled. For more informa-
tion, contact The Dalles Lock &
Dam Ranger Office at 541-506-
8475 or visit www.nwp.usace.
army.mil/Locations/Colum-
bia-River/The-Dalles/.
To stay up to date on all Port-
land District events, follow us
on Facebook at www.facebook.
com/PortlandCorps.
Get more information about
raptor viewing opportunities
in the Columbia River Gorge
at www.gorgediscovery.org or
www.rowenawildlifeclinic.org.
SAIF hosts farmworker safety seminars in the Gorge
Farm work is a whole lot safer
than it used to be. But as far as
SAIF is concerned, even one
injury or illness is too many, said
a press release.
That’s why SAIF is offering
29 free ag safety seminars in 17
cities across Oregon, continuing
through March. Nine will be
presented entirely in Spanish,
inlcuding two in Hood River and
The Dalles.
“We purposely hold these
in the off-season to encourage
attendance,” said Courtney Mer-
riott, senior safety management
consultant at SAIF and presenter
at this year’s seminars. “Our goal
is to provide the latest safety
content for the industry, so that
every ag worker goes home safe
and healthy each night.”
This year’s seminars will focus
on four topics: Respiratory per-
sonal protective equipment,
working at elevation, safety lead-
ership for anyone, and incident
analysis — a structured process
for identifying what happened
and reducing recurrence of
injuries moving forward, said a
press release.
EN ESPAÑOL
Jan. 13, Hood River; Jan. 23,
The Dalles.
In March, SAIF will also offer
webinars online in English and,
new this year, Spanish.
The seminars are designed
primarily for people working
in agriculture, but are open to
anyone interested in ag safety
and health. English seminars
will be Jan. 22 at The Dalles
Readiness Center and Feb. 12 at
Hood River County Fairgrounds.
Spanish seminars will be Jan.
13 in Hood River, and Jan. 23 in
The Dalles. All will run from 9:30
a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and lunch will
be provided.
Employers with small ag busi-
nesses who attend the seminar,
or watch the webinars, will
meet the Occupational Safe-
ty and Health Administration
(OSHA) instructional require-
ment, one of four requirements
that exempt small agricultural
operations from random OSHA
inspections.
Three hours of technical and
one hour of business continuing
education credits will be offered
if approved by the Landscape
Contractors Board. Producer
continuing education credit
hours for licensed insurance
agents have been requested and
are pending approval by the
Department of Consumer and
Business Services.
For more information, visit
www.saif.com/agseminars.
Walden announces $1.6 million grant for Morrow
Rep. Greg Walden (R-Hood
River) has announced the De-
partment of Transportation
(DOT) awarded $1,623,000 in
federal funding to the Port of
Morrow to assist with improv-
ing equipment and infrastruc-
ture in order to meet the needs
of the port’s marine terminals.
In October, Walden wrote to
Secretary of Transportation
Elaine Chao urging DOT to
award this grant funding to
the port. The port was able
to apply for the grant due to
DOT’s Maritime Administra-
tion (MARAD) designating
the Port of Morrow for Marine
Highway Project Designation
and thus expand additional
funding opportunities for the
Port and simultaneously in-
crease economic opportunity
for the region.
“The Columbia River sys-
tem is a valuable asset for
transporting wheat and other
products from eastern Oregon
to the world and the Port of
Morrow plays a pivotal role in
that system,” said Walden. “... I
want to thank Secretary Chao
and the Trump Administration
for awarding these funds and
continuing to provide for Ore-
gonians.”
DISCOUNTED
BRIDGE TOLLS
with
What is BreezeBy?
What are the benefi ts?
BreezeBy is an electronic system
for paying tolls on the Bridge of the
When the Bridge of the Gods
Gods and the Hood River-White
Salmon Interstate Bridge. Each
BreezeBy system goes live on January
6, 2020, BreezeBy customers will be
time you cross the bridge your toll
is automatically deducted from the
prepaid balance on your account.
able to use their transponders to pay
How do I sign up?
their tolls on both bridges with one
What does it cost?
Create a new account online today at
account. BreezeBy cutomers will pay
There are no fees to open a
portofcascadelocks.org
BreezeBy account, and your fi rst
We will mail your transponder to you,
transponder is free.
no need to come to the Port offi ce.
1
1
only $1.25 at the Bridge of the Gods, 2
instead of $2 for cash toll payments. 3
2
BreezeBy toll at the Hood River Bridge is $1 -- 3 Base rates are for 2-axle vehicles.
One free transponder per household. Each additional transponder is $5.
Beginning January 6, 2020, BreezeBy works for the Bridge of the Gods in Cascade Locks
What happens to my
Local Sticker?
What happens to my
Coupons?
Coupons will no longer be sold after
December 20, 2019. Coupons will no longer
Local Stickers will not be
be accepted for toll payment after February
accepted after February 3,
3, 2020, but can be redeemed at either Port
2020. Having an active
offi ce for credit to a BreezeBy account. Cash
Breezeby account will
be the way to get
discounts on tolls
refunds will also be available at the Port of
Cascade Locks offi ce.
going forward.
Breezeby account
holders will pay $1.25 per crossing at the Bridge
of the Gods. 4 The cash toll will be $2.00.
4
BreezeBy toll at the Hood River bridge is $1
Questions?
More information online at portofcascadelocks.org
Call (541) 386-1645 or email porthr@gorge.net.